


Cadet Scrap

by Caivu



Category: Batman (Comics), Batwoman (Comic), DCU, DCU (Comics), Detective Comics (Comics)
Genre: Army, Boxing & Fisticuffs, Cadets, Canon Compliant, College, Continuity Nods, F/F, Face Punching, Fist Fights, Gap Filler, Mild Language, Military Academy, Minor Violence, Paperwork, Secret Relationship, USMA, West Point, Women in the Military, united states military academy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-07
Updated: 2018-09-07
Packaged: 2019-07-08 01:36:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15920262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caivu/pseuds/Caivu
Summary: West Point cadets Kate Kane and Sophie Moore do some underground fighting.Sequel to "Well-Matched".





	Cadet Scrap

Dark stormclouds, calm for now, hung low over the United States Military Academy, and even then it was still worse to be cooped inside doing paperwork. Yet that was precisely the circumstance Kate Kane found herself in on her last first evening at West Point. 

The past week had been the proverbial blur as she and the rest of the Brigade Staff had feverishly prepared for the upcoming term. New responsibilities, new dorms, new class of cadets... lots of things to learn and adjust to.

And paperwork. So much _paperwork_.

Some of it was at least digital, like the monotonous PDF she was currently filling out, but the to-do pile on her desk still towered uncomfortably high. None of it was complex... there was just a lot of it. Requisition forms, letters to sign, emails to read and make sure got forwarded around to the rest of the staff. And already there were multiple disciplinary reports from the plebes in E-2—

She heard her phone buzz over the goth rock blaring through her headphones. A text from Sophie, her roommate and girlfriend.  _Secret_ girlfriend, due to the military's current policies.

 _Arvin_ , the text read. _Booked the old Combatives lab. Come dressed to fight. I feel like punching up your face. :)_

Kate stared at the message. It was an atypically ridiculous thing for Sophie to write. Maybe the new stress load had gotten to her. She couldn't be serious. Sparring in the _old_   _Combatives lab?_ Not one of the actual boxing rooms? _Now?_

But then again... she wasn't here, and she had her own forms and emails to take care of. So this probably wasn't some joke.

Kate glanced at her stack of work.

 _What the hell, Kate_ , she thought _. You've got the whole night to tackle that pile. You can afford a half-hour of goofing off._

She started typing.

 _Oooh, you scamp_ , Kate replied. _This our rematch?_

 _Any time, any place, you said,_ Sophie sent. _Now's the time, there's the place. Let's see what you learned over the summer._

 _Unless you're scared >:)_, she added a moment later.

Kate smirked. Hardly.

 _You're on, ma'am_ , she replied. _Can't wait to beat you up. Be there in 5. ;D_

\----

The night was cool with a light wind as Kate jogged from the Eisenhower Barracks to Arvin Gym, wearing a windbreaker and snap pants over her boxing gear. She threw random combos as she went, ring shoes quietly slapping the pavement. Her heart pounded, but not from exertion.

Last February, she and Sophie had faced each other in the final bout of the 54th Brigade Boxing Open, a barn-burner that ended with a roaring ovation from the crowd as the exhausted, blood-smeared cadets embraced in the center of the ring. That fight had not just been one of two women's matches marking the return of female fights to the Open, it had been a turning point in their fledgling romance.

They'd talked about it the following Friday, well after the rough post-fight sex in the Arvin showers had passed and other associated heightened emotions had worn off, just as their black eyes were starting to fade.

Both of them knew about camaraderie borne from shared, difficult experiences; anyone who had gone through Beast and Cadet Field Training could attest to that. But on that February evening, stripping it down to just the two of them in the ring, locked in a brutal contest, the intensity of such emotions had only been amplified. They had learned things about themselves and each other difficult to express in words.

The couple had come to the conclusion that their fight had been akin to a forge, strengthening them by testing their mettle against each other in a way they could not yet do openly. And they had passed. If they could make it through six minutes of beating each other up, they should be able to weather anything. At least, that was the idea.

But of course, being just as competitive as Kate, Sophie had agreed to Kate's offer of a rematch to avenge her loss, and now that time had arrived. It was this anticipation of a unique form of intimacy that had Kate's heart racing.

That and the fact that this whole thing was breaking a bunch of rules.

None of the Combatives labs, old or new, had boxing rings, and sparring outside of them was forbidden. And since _that_ was true, it also meant that there wouldn't be a coach or other official present. Kate hoped that Sophie hadn't also been foolish enough to lie about what the checked-out gloves, headgear, and mouth guards would be for. But then, how would she have obtained them?

 _Best we can hope for is area tours if we get found,_ Kate thought, and while that looming threat of punishment weighed heavy on her mind, the typical enticing nature of the forbidden was also present.

As she neared Arvin, she could see a smattering of cadets and even some faculty filtering in and out. The building was open for another hour, but it would be deserted enough that their fight shouldn't attract much notice.

Hopefully none.

\----

The old Combatives lab was a somewhat dimly-lit, utilitarian room in the basement. Exposed ceiling girders, raw brick walls, bare concrete floor with a row of olive-green tumbling mats spread almost the length of the room and broken into six 15-foot squares. The only decoration was a large American flag hung on the wall near the main entrance.

Sophie was shadowboxing with handwraps in the mat section directly in front of the flag when Kate arrived; clearly this mat was to be their "ring".

Sophie’s back was to the door, and Kate took a moment to admire her girlfriend openly before she noticed. The tightness of her combinations, the cute _ish_ of breath accompanying each punch, the light sheen of sweat already coating her skin, the way her dark hair bounced as she bobbed and weaved against an imaginary opponent.

And _damn_ did she look good in a sports bra and trunks, each black with a small custom gold ARMY logotype.

Intense and prohibited or not, this was going to be _fun_.

"Nice outfit," Kate teased, "but if you're aiming to distract me, I've already seen you naked."

"Oh, _psh_ ," Sophie huffed, turning. "This is for me, Candy. You look this good…" She flexed her arms and stomach. "…you don't keep it hidden."

"Oy," Kate sighed dramatically, unzipping her windbreaker and tossing it to the wall next to Sophie's own street clothes. "You're making me feel a mite inadequate." It was another joke, of course; though leaner than Sophie, Kate was just as built.

She peeled off her breakaway pants and tossed them as well. Her own gear was more in line with standard boxing apparel for cadets: a dark green Army shirt tucked into plain black trunks.

Sophie grew serious. "Okay, rules. Keep everything at 75%. Three two-minute rounds like usual. Three falls total, you lose. Go out of bounds three times, you lose. Everything else’s the same."

She went over to her pile of clothes and dug out her phone and two rolls of boxing wraps velcroed together.

She tossed the wraps to Kate. "Get taped up and we'll start."

_Well, at least she didn't lie about anything._

"So we're doin’ this old-timey, huh?" She unstuck the wraps and let gravity unwind them.

"Mm-hmm. Extra incentive. Unless you want a shiner in your Ring Weekend photos, keep your hands up."

"Or knocked-out teeth." She started winding the cloth around her left wrist, lacing it through her fingers and over her knuckles. "Hardcore. Dumb, but hardcore."

"That's that idea," Sophie said setting up the match parameters on a timer app. "Though I don't know what to say if we get caught."

"Well, that's nothing new to us, is it?" Kate finished her wraps and pounded her fists together.

"Ready?" Sophie asked.

"More than," Kate said. "But first, we gotta make it official."

_You wanna do weird stuff, then let's go all out._

"What are you talking—"

"Laaaadies and gentlemeeeen," Kate intoned into an imaginary microphone to an unseen audience. "It is now time for tonight's main event."

"Oh God," Sophie groaned.

 _No kidding_ , Kate thought.  _If anyone else were here, I_ _might die._

But she kept going.

"A rematch in the women's 156-pound class. Boxing out of the blue corner, hailing from Brooklyn, New York City… Sophiiiiiiie ‘Gimme’ Mooooore!"

"You’re stalling," Sophie said, but gamely raised her fists and did a lap around the mat before stopping in a corner.

"Aaaand her opponent this evening, fighting out of the red corner… all the way from Gotham City, New Jersey, defending her Brigade Boxing title… Kaaaaate 'Caaaaaandy' Kaaaaaane!"

Kate mimed stepping through ropes and played to the fictional crowd. She reached the corner opposite Sophie and bobbed in place, arms loose.

" _Now_ are you ready?"

Kate raised her fists. "Square up, buttercup. Let's go."

Sophie tapped the round timer, set it against the wall. She too raised her fists.

They locked eyes across the mat as the timer beeped down ten seconds, and then a loud _ding_ echoed off the walls.

They met at the center and high-fived before settling into their stances and circling, wary without the padding of gloves, headgear, or mouth guards.

They felt out distances with light jabs, all easily blocked or dodged. The size of the mat and the lack of physical barriers made footwork a challenge; as much time was spent springing away from the edges as throwing punches.

“You went small on purpose,” Kate said, throwing a combo that smacked off Sophie's forearms. She was used to maintaining range, using her long jab to keep opponents away.

"It's bad for me, too," Sophie replied. She threw an uppercut; Kate leaned away from it. "Can't keep stepping in and..." Right hook, blocked. "...doing that."

"Works for me," Kate said. Sophie had battered her with those at the Open all through the first round, and they weren't pleasant.

The pair was finally adjusting to the range and throwing body blows when the bell sounded.

"Infighting it is," Sophie panted as she backed into her corner. It was more to herself.

"And add ‘broken fingers' to your list of ailments," Kate said, shaking out her hands. That was just what she needed, with all the stuff she still had left to sign.

They spent the rest of the break in silence, stretching.

_Ding!_

To the center again. Jabbing, cross-countering, landing clipping hits to the face.

They pushed in, curled deep to protect head and core. Almost as much a grappling match as a boxing one; foreheads grinding together as they traded body blows, trying to keep rooted and shove the other toward the mat edge.

Smacks of fists, grunts of effort and hisses of pain, thumps of shoulder meeting shoulder, small puffs of air with each footfall, Sophie's _ish_ - _ish_ ing.

Kate finally broke the lock with a messy liver shot and a short, tight uppercut to Sophie’s cheek. She exhaled hard and dropped to a knee.

“One-one-thousand, two-one-thousand…” Kate counted, backing off.

Sophie panted, stood at the count of six. She beckoned Kate to continue.

“…seven-one-thousand, eight-one-thousand,” Kate said, finishing the mandatory count. Fists up.

She closed in; Sophie landed a jab.

Kate cracked her across the chin with a left hook.

They nearly headbutted as they collided back to short range. Right uppercut to the sternum from Sophie, and Kate stumbled back.

A hook whooshed by her head. She sent a jab to Sophie's mouth; her head whipped back, briefly causing a starburst of dark hair.

 _Ah, damn_.

"Shoulda pulled that more," Kate said. "Sorry."

Sophie probed her teeth with her tongue, brushed her hair from her eyes.

"S'okay," she said, but her face told otherwise.

Circling again.

Sophie rushed in, jabbing down to the beltline. Kate doubled, exhaled with the blow.

Sophie threw in a flurry. Uppercuts to the body. Hooks to the ribs. Kate tried standing up, got belted across the temple. Blocked a jab-hook. 

 _Cripes, what's gotten into her?_ Kate thought. Some anger during a fight was natural, but this was tipping beyond that.

The bell rang as they caught each other across the nose with snappy rights.

Returning to their corners again, Kate heard Sophie give a thick snort; if her nose wasn't bleeding, it would be soon. Her own face felt slightly puffy, and her ribs wouldn't feel so great tomorrow.

“You good?” she asked. “You went into beast mode for a second there."

"Fine,” Sophie muttered, wiping sweat from her forehead.

"C'mon, don't do that,” said Kate. “I reckon this is about more than just a rematch. More than just scouring some ring rust."

Sophie sighed. “Wanted to work off some nerves,” she replied. “Last year jitters, I guess."

"By punching li'l old me in the face?" Kate batted her eyes.

"Dammit, Kate,” Sophie huffed, hands on hips. "Aren't you even a _bit_ worried? Year from now, we could well be _overseas_. And there's no guarantee…"

She broke off, but Kate knew what she would have said. 

_No guarantee we'll ever see each other after graduation._

"Soph, c'mon. We've talked about this. We can make this work. We're already under a hell of a lot more pressure than any other couple here."

"Exactly.  _Here._ Not a warzone."

The bell rang.

"Here, where we see each other every day, hours at a time," she panted, snapping off a combo that Kate blocked. "Here, where we don't have to worry about killing anyone."

Jab-cross-hook. Kate was only blocking now.

 _Let her rant_ , she thought. _Let her get tired._

"Few months, we'll be out of this routine." Jab miss, cross that bit through Kate's defense into her nose. "And when that happens, what's the plan?"

 _I think she might be losing it._ Kate threw a combo that got pawed away.

"Maybe we won't be able to lean on each other anymore," Sophie continued. "Or anyone else."

Body cross and hook, thudding into Kate's biceps.

"Maybe it won't be like the Open, with dear old Colonel Dad giving you tips."

Jab. Kate blocked, barely.

"No, it'll be more like this. Your daddy won't be able to help you there. Just like…"

She snapped Kate's head around with a right hook. 

 _Oh damn she's_ never _hit that hard_

"…your daddy can't help you now, soldier," Sophie finished.

And with that, she let loose with a huge left hook that smashed across Kate's jaw and sent her sprawling out of bounds. She groaned, dizzy.

 _And it's coitins fer da Champ_ , Kate thought, bizarrely. She might have laughed at that had it not been for the dull ache in her face.

The final bell sounded.

Sophie knelt down, her demeanor softening. “Five years of service to your country minimum, once we're second lieutenants,” she said. “You even think that far in the future?”

 _I'm fine, thanks for asking_ , Kate thought, but there was no real negativity in it. They had put each other on the canvas enough to know their limits.

“Right now,” Kate said, rubbing her face, “I'm thinking about all the colorful cartoon birds playing merry go ‘round my noggin.” She sat up. “Vey’z mir, Sophie, you wallop like a mule. You're gonna regret doing that to my jaw.”

Sophie offered a hand, raising her eyebrows. “Oh, you gonna do me _worse?_ ”

“To be honest,” Kate said as Sophie pulled her up, “I was hoping to do you better, but with my jaw out of commission…” She brushed a sweaty hair off Sophie's forehead. “I should call you ‘Jawbreaker’ next.”

Sophie blushed, grinning. “You hush your mouth, Candy Kane,” she said. “You're the toughest cadet at West Point… but you're nowhere near as sweet.”

"And you're the prettiest," Kate said. "Even now. Not a mark on ya." It was true.

"Thank God. You don't look so bad yourself—"

From the secondary entrance, a man cleared his throat. The cadets turned, surprised.

Brigade Tactical Officer Reyes stood there, dressed in his day uniform, his salt-and-pepper hair damp. Clearly he had just come from the showers after his own workout elsewhere in the basement.

The women snapped to attention. “Colonel,” they said in unison.

“At ease, cadets,” Reyes said, and they relaxed. He narrowed his eyes, scanned the room briefly. “This seems a bit unorthodox.”

Aside from the internal pang she felt about rule-breaking, Kate didn't fail to miss the ambiguity of those words.

 _Does he suspect?_ she wondered. _Does he_ know? She forced herself to stay calm.

"Just breaking off some of the summer rust, sir," Kate said. "We were just finishing up."

Reyes looked skeptical. "Well, don't go making this a habit," he said. "You two are leaders, and I have a feeling you both know you're in violation of some rules here. You may be doing tours next time."

"Understood, sir. Won't happen again," Kate said.

"The same, sir," Sophie said. "I understand."

"All right then," Reyes said. "Good night, ladies. Be sure to leave this room cleaner than you found it."

"Yes sir," they snapped in unison, "thank you, sir."

With that, Reyes disappeared into the hall, his footsteps echoing away.

The cadets exhaled in relief.

"So..." Kate said. "That stuff you were saying..."

"I just want us...  _this_... to have a plan," said Sophie. "For whatever comes next. I don't want to just wing it." She shook her head. "Not this."

Kate nodded. "Tell you what. Next time we're both free, we'll have that talk. Instead of, y'know... Firstie Fight Club."

Sophie smiled. "Sounds good."

"Then in the meantime," Kate said, holding out her right hand, "a fight well fought, ma'am.”

"You too." Sophie took it and winced as they hugged, even though Kate hadn't squeezed hard.

"Thought so," Kate said. "Told ya you'd regret it. Next time we'll do this properly, yeah?"

"Ooooh," Sophie said in mock arrogance, "you mean when I kick your ass at the next Brigades and take your title?"

"No, I mean when you _try_ that and I break your nose instead," Kate responded in the same tone. The tension was gone now, replaced by trash-talk. "You'll have to settle for this half-assed thing. But..."

She grinned smugly.

"...we still have to make it official."

Sophie sighed. "C'mon, let me have some dignity here."

"Not on your life," Kate teased. "Mild embarrassment is the bare minimum you get for dragging me into this bit of foolishness."

Sophie rolled her eyes and offered Kate her right hand. Kate held it high as she addressed the phantom crowd again, declaring the woman she loved as the winner of this odd little event, this time not caring who heard.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> The inspiration for this came from a scene in _Batwoman: Rebirth_ #1; in fact, this scene is reproduced here. In the comic, it begins with Sophie's line "Your daddy can't help you now, soldier."  
>  After reading that scene for the first time, my imagination spun with questions. Why were Kate and Sophie bare-knuckle boxing? And alone? Why did Reyes happen to be there? What were the circumstances that lead to this scene? What did Sophie's line refer to in the context of sparring? This story was an attempt to answer those questions.
> 
> Miscellaneous:
> 
> \- To the best of my knowledge, based on Kate's current comic history, this story takes place on Monday, August 16, 2010.  
> \- The trouble with the E-2 plebes is a reference to Detective Comics #859, where Kate mentions that to Sophie.  
> \- West Point's 54th BBO did indeed see the return of women's boxing to the event (after five years), and served as a springboard for the formation of their women's boxing club. I simply tacked on a fight with Kate and Sophie. My story "Well-Matched" tells of that fight.  
> \- The room I'm calling the "old Combatives lab" is, as far as I know, completely fictitious, but it does match the location from the comic.  
> \- The rules Kate worries about breaking are, as best I can tell from my research, accurate.


End file.
